Citi and Coinbase Expand Partnership to Bring Stablecoin Payments to Businesses

One of the world's biggest banks and America's largest crypto exchange are getting closer. Citi and Coinbase have expanded their partnership to connect everyday business payments with stablecoins, according to The Block and an announcement from both companies on September 28.

The pitch is simple: businesses can start taking stablecoin payments without ever having to hold or manage crypto themselves.

How it works

The deal has two sides.

• Citi clients can accept stablecoins. Corporate clients using Citi's merchant platform, Spring by Citi, will be able to accept stablecoin payments. Coinbase handles the stablecoin side and automatically converts what comes in into regular money (fiat) for settlement. The merchant simply receives dollars.
• Coinbase gets bank-grade accounts. Coinbase will use Citi's Virtual Account Wallet to power its own Virtual Accounts. These let Coinbase's business customers accept, hold and pay out fiat, with incoming funds able to be converted into stablecoins automatically.

Both services are launching first in the United States.

Why it matters

For years, the biggest barrier to businesses accepting crypto hasn't been technology. It's been the hassle and risk of actually holding it: accounting headaches, price swings and compliance questions. This setup removes most of that. A customer can pay in a stablecoin, and the business still ends up with ordinary money in the bank.

It also shows how far stablecoins have come. Tokens pegged to the dollar are increasingly being treated as a payments tool rather than just a trading chip, and large banks now want to be part of that plumbing instead of watching from the sidelines.

Building on last year's deal

This isn't the first time the two firms have teamed up. Citi and Coinbase first announced a collaboration in October 2025, focused on infrastructure for moving between fiat and crypto. The new agreement takes that further, into merchant payments and business accounts.

The bottom line

Citi and Coinbase are making it easier for ordinary businesses to say "yes" to stablecoin payments, without having to become crypto experts. If it catches on, paying a supplier or a shop in digital dollars could start to feel as routine as a card payment.

This article is for information only and is not financial advice.

Sources: The Block, September 28, 2026; Citi and Coinbase announcements.